The Long Road
to Energy $avings
Looking for answers in asphalt
PURDUE CIVIL ENGINEERING
FALL 2005
Who wants to be a civil engineer?
An innovative (interactive) teaching style
Women at Work
Diversifying the construction business
Recovering from Katrina
How one family is picking up the pieces
up front
On My Mind
John Underwood
Welcome to Impact, the new magazine for the School of Civil Engineering.
Within this new format, we are sharing stories of what’s happening within our
school. I invite you to read about a few of our students, faculty, and alumni—
all impacting the world around them.
It’s an exciting time for the civil engineering profession. Public demand is high
for a safe and effective infrastructure, as well as a clean environment. Purdue’s
civil engineering graduates are leaders in the profession, with over 800 currently
serving as presidents, CEOs, or vice presidents for a variety of companies.
Our school is in a growth phase with 57 faculty members, 300 graduate students,
and 530 undergraduate students. Our educational programs—among the nation’s
best—rank seventh and 17th at the undergraduate level for civil engineering and
environmental engineering, respectively, while our graduate civil engineering
program ranks fifth. We also offer unique sub-disciplines of study in
geomatics, construction engineering management, geotechnical engineering, hydraulics and hydrology, structural engineering, environmental
engineering, materials engineering, and transportation engineering.
Purdue’s Civil Engineering research program is strong, with a
budget of $12 million in faculty-directed research projects this year.
We’ve brought in several new faculty members to work in the crossdisciplinary signature areas of Intelligent Infrastructure Systems and
Global Sustainable Industrial Systems. And our five year fund-raising
campaign is helping increase our number of chaired professorships,
scholarships, and fellowships, as well as generating funding for much
needed facilities renovation.
I hope you enjoy this glimpse into our school.
M. Kathy Banks
Professor and Interim Head
From the Editor
We’re officially underway with Impact, the new magazine for the School of Civil Engineering (CE). As the title suggests, we
hope to leave a mark with this publication. First and foremost, we want to tell stories here. Among this first batch you’ll learn
about an innovative teaching style that is helping students learn. You’ll get a glimpse behind the scenes of the busy undergraduate office. You can read about some civil engineering solutions for saving energy. Bear witness to the growing number of
young women entering the construction field thanks, in part, to internships like those offered by our construction engineering
and management program. And see how the family of Robert Frosch, a native of New Orleans and a CE associate professor,
has been affected by Hurricane Katrina.
But we’d also like to hear your stories. Drop us a line and let us know how you’re doing, how you think we’re doing, and what
else you’d like to see within these pages.
William Meiners
Editor
peimpact@purdue.edu
Cover photo from Corbis
Purdue Civil Engineering
contents
UP FRONT
Messages from the head of the school and our magazine editor
COMING UP
Noteworthy events for 2006
2
AROUND CE
Interactive classrooms and school news
3
3
BEHIND THE SCENES
Sharing the busy workload in the CE undergraduate office
6
IN MY VIEW
Nick Aschilman, vice president at Fugro, on energy and the
role of civil engineers
7
COVER
How well-paved and smooth-running roadways can lead to energy savings
8
FEATURE
More women in a man’s world: construction engineering and management
internships at work
8
12
UP CLOSE: STUDENTS
Fund raisers, organizations, and students abroad
14
UP CLOSE: FACULTY
How one faculty member’s family is picking up the pieces
after Hurricane Katrina
16
12
CAMPAIGN IMPACT
Building on the success of The Campaign for Purdue
18
UP CLOSE: ALUMNI
A high tide to success: Phil Stutes and opportunities seized
19
ALUMNI NEWS
Class notes, announcements, in memoriam, and more
20
CHECK IT OUT
Looking for answers to a 50-year mystery
23
16
1
Impact Fall 2005
coming up
Calendar 2006
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
January
4
Chicagoland CE Basketball Outing
Chicago, Illinois
22
Transportation Research Board Annual
Meeting & CE Reception
Washington, D.C.
February
School of Civil Engineering
John A. Edwardson Dean
of Engineering ........................................Linda P. B. Katehi
Professor and Interim Head ............... M. Katherine Banks
16
CE Alumni Achievement Awards Banquet
Purdue
Director of Development ......................................Jim Brehm
17
CE Advisory Council Meeting
Purdue
Manager of Alumni Relations
and Communications ......................................Cindy Lawley
March
2
Distinguished Lecture • Madeleine Albright, Purdue
Former U.S. Secretary of State
3
Distinguished Engineering Alumni
Convocation & Reception
28-30 92nd Purdue Road School
Purdue
Purdue
April
8
CE Breakfast & Gala Weekend
Purdue
27
CE Scholarship Awards Program
Purdue
10
CE Golf Open
Purdue
13
CE Commencement Reception
Purdue
May
Director of Engineering Marketing
and Communications ............................................Rwitti Roy
Editor ..........................................................William Meiners
Graphic Designer .......................................Susan Ferringer
Photographer ............................................... Vincent Walter
Contibuting Writers .................................Suzanne Karberg,
Cindy Lawley, Kathy Mayer,
Cynthia Sequin, Linda Terhune
CE Impact is published by the Purdue University School
of Civil Engineering for 11,800 alumni, faculty, students,
corporate partners, and friends. We welcome your
comments. Please send them to the following address:
Civil Engineering Impact
Purdue University
1435 Win Hentschel Blvd., Suite B120
West Lafayette, IN 47906-4153
Articles herein may be reprinted by nonprofit organizations without permission. Appropriate credit would
be appreciated.
To make a gift to the School of Civil Engineering,
or to learn more about rennovation plans for the
CE Building, please contact:
Jim Brehm
Director of Development
(765) 494-2236
brehmj@purdue.edu
One Last Look: With the new Neil Armstrong Building now well on the rise in front of the Civil
Engineering Building, here’s a view that will not be seen again. Known on campus maps as
CIVL, the building was constructed in 1962, expanded and remodeled in 1988. Here’s looking
at you, CIVL.
Cindy Lawley
Manager of Alumni Relations & Communications
(765) 494-7089
lawley@purdue.edu
Purdue is an equal access/equal opportunity university
2
Purdue Civil Engineering
Produced by the Engineering Communications Office
around ce
Who Wants to Be a Civil Engineer?
With a nod to television’s “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” a civil
engineering professor is challenging his students with “lifeline” questions.
It’s Veteran’s Day. On a Friday morning
last November 11th, some 50 civil engineering students fill the tiered seats in
a lecture hall in the Physics Building.
Everyone in the largely baseballcapped crowd quickly reaches for a remote control, which cost them each six
bucks at the beginning of the semester.
They know the routine by now.
On this day Jason Weiss, an associate
professor of civil engineering, runs
through a PowerPoint, detailing, in part,
the “role of carbon content on the properties of steel” in this materials class.
After introducing some concepts, he
quizzes the students with chalkboard
problems and asks them to buzz in
with their answers—offering multiple
choice options of A, B, C, or D. Their
responses are displayed immediately
on the screen. As the audience weighs
in on why answers are right and wrong,
Weiss occasionally rewards participants
with a thrown piece of candy.
Weiss first experimented with the use
of remote control answer devices in his
spring 2005 “CE 331 Class on Engineering
Materials.” The devices enabled the
students to answer questions during
class, have their answers automatically
recorded in a computer database, and
immediately summarized the percentage of right and wrong answers.
“Students have told me that it keeps
them interested in class,” Weiss says,
“while allowing them to deal with more
real-world concepts.”
Jason Weiss, an associate professor of civil engineering, first experimented with the use of
remote control answer devices in his spring 2005 “CE 331 Class on Engineering Materials.”
It also keeps them more involved
than the typical lecture. You won’t find
sleepers or students tucked behind
Exponents here. Typically, Weiss
begins the class by posing a practical question to get the students thinking about a particular problem. For
example, in a class dealing with
concrete technology, the students
might be asked to review a series of
concrete mixture designs and to predict the mixtures that would have the
highest strength, highest durability,
and lowest costs. Students are able
to use their “natural instincts” and
information from the pre-class readings
to draw a conclusion.
While this first question may only
result in 20 to 35 percent of the class
predicting the correct answer, Weiss
believes this approach is effective in that
it triggers critical thinking as students
search for concepts that they can apply to the question. The same question
asked at the end of lectures usually results in an increase of 70-75 percent correct answers. Then students are allowed
to consult with one another to develop an
argument for this position and convince
each other of their reasoning. In a sense,
they’re seeking a lifeline. When the question is asked for a third time, a great
majority of the class (approximately 95
percent) chooses the correct answer.
“For me, this method provides instantaneous feedback on whether the students understand what you’re teaching,”
Weiss says. “I can clear up misconceptions immediately, make sure all students are actively participating in the
lecture, and promote teamwork.”
While many of these students, however
much they want to be, may not become
millionaires, their interactive classroom
experience could surely help put them
on the road to be civil engineers. And
that’s a pretty good final answer.
—W.M.
3
Impact Fall 2005
New Faculty
Portraits by John Underwood
around ce
Robert Connor
Robert J. Connor joins Purdue as
an assistant professor of civil engineering in the structures group from Lehigh
University ATLSS Center. He has over
14 years of experience in the research
and testing of bridges. His research
focuses on fabrication flaws, fatigue
cracking, fracture, and failures. He has
developed repair strategies for structures for a variety of agencies including state DOT, rapid transit authorities,
construction companies, and structural
consultants. He is currently developing
fatigue design specifications for highway bridge structures, sign and signal
structures, and bridge expansion joints
for NCHRP and state agencies.
Ayhan Irfanoglu joins Purdue as
an assistant professor of civil engineering in the structures group. After receiving his Ph.D. in 2000 from California
Institute of Technology, he served as
an engineer for a nationwide engineering consulting company, Wiss, Janney,
Elstner Associates, Inc. in California.
His research interests include development of conceptual and practical
frameworks for performance-based
structural design and evaluation, uncertainty modeling and rational decisionmaking in engineering, earthquake and
blast engineering, modal testing and
analysis, structural health-monitoring,
large-scale structural analysis and simulation, and engineering seismology.
Irfanoglu has also been a team member in evaluating and providing technical support for the Bingol earthquake,
May 2003, the Kocaeli earthquake,
4
Purdue Civil Engineering
Ayhan Irfanoglu
Samuel Labi
August 1999, and the Northridge earthquake, January 1994.
Samuel Labi joins Purdue as an
assistant professor of civil engineering in the transportation group. He
completed his Ph.D. at Purdue in
2001. In 2002, Labi was awarded the
Milton Pikarski Award for Best National
Ph.D. Dissertation in Transportation
Engineering (Science and Technology
category) by the Council of University
Transportation Centers (CUTC). His
research and teaching interests include
management and evaluation of highway
infrastructure systems, system operations (traffic monitoring, safety, and
congestion, and intelligent transportation systems), transportation economics
and financing, and application of statistical and operations research tools in
infrastructure systems management.
Hugo Ochoa-Acuña is an assistant professor of environmental epidemiology at Purdue in the Department
of Veterinary Pathobiology with a partial
appointment in civil engineering with
the environmental group. After receiving his Ph.D. in 1999 he completed
postdoctoral work at the University of
Florida Center for Environmental and
Human Toxicology. His research interests include environmental epidemiology, ecological risk assessment and
modeling, ecophysiology, and ecotoxicology. Dr. Ochoa-Acuña has initiated
an ecological risk assessment laboratory where simple ecological systems
are used to determine adverse effects
of chemicals.
Hugo Ochoa-Acuña
Santiago Pujol
Santiago Pujol joins Purdue as an
assistant professor of civil engineering in
the structures group. He received both
his master’s and Ph.D. from Purdue. His
research interests include earthquake
engineering, seismic vulnerability of
existing structures, performance-based
methodologies, instrumentation and
testing of structures, response of structures to impulsive loads, structural-health
monitoring, and repair and strengthening
of structures. He has participated in the
seismic evaluation of reinforced concrete
buildings in Azerbaijan, California, the
Dominican Republic and Turkey. He
provided technical support for a litigation process involving estimation of the
extent of damage attributable in the
1994 Northridge Earthquake in buildings
owned by the County of Los Angeles.
Thomas P. Seager joins Purdue
as an assistant professor of civil engineering in the construction and environmental groups. He graduated from
Clarkson University, Potsdam, New
York, with his bachelor’s, master’s, and
doctoral degrees in civil and environmental engineering. His interests include industrial ecology, sustainability,
systems analysis, energy analysis, and
environmental manufacturing management. At Purdue, Seager is active in the
newly-founded Discovery Park Center
for the Environment, where he is currently leading the Sustainable Futures
launch team. The mission of the team
is to create a research agenda that
fosters sustainability through economic
and environmental progress.
Fred Mannering, who stepped down as head of civil engineering last summer to return
to teaching and research, surveys the final construction inside the Robert L. and Terry
L. Bowen Laboratory of Large-Scale Civil Engineering Research.
Stepping Down
Thomas Seager
Maria Sepúlveda
Maria S. Sepúlveda is an
assistant professor in the Department
of Forestry and Natural Resources
with a partial appointment in civil
engineering with the environmental
group. She completed her Ph.D. in
Physiological Sciences, College of
Veterinary Medicine, at the University of
Florida. Her research interests include
ecotoxicology, with special emphasis
on evaluating the sublethal effects of
contaminants and other environmental
stressors on the reproductive physiology of fish and wildlife; development
and application of molecular biomarkers of exposure and effects to environmental contaminants; bioaccumulation
rates and factors affecting bioavailability of contaminants in biota; and impact
of diseases on wildlife population, with
special interest on parasite diseases.
Fred Mannering stepped down as
head of the School of Civil Engineering
this past summer. He has returned to
the faculty to pursue scholarship activities and explore new opportunities
in the transportation area. During his
tenure as head, the school has had an
incredible expansion including the addition of 15 new faculty members and
securing a nearly 50 percent increase
in external funding from research grants
and contracts. Alumni and friends have
committed in excess of $20 million to
help construct a state-of-the art laboratory, enabling the school to attract and
retain the best faculty and students,
with commitments for five new endowed
professorships and numerous endowments for student scholarships and
fellowships. This progress has not gone
unnoticed—the 2006 U.S. News and
World Report rankings have the graduate program moving up to number five
in the nation. The hard work of faculty
and staff, and the generous contributions of alumni and friends contribute to
the continued success of the School
of Civil Engineering.
Daniel Halpin will step down as
head of the Division of Construction
Engineering and Management and
retire from the University at the end of
the year. Serving as the head for more
than 18 years, Halpin has worked for
four engineering deans and two university presidents. For 16 years in a row
BSCEM graduates have been hired
at a 100 percent rate upon graduation. Internships are a unique component of the Purdue BSCEM program.
Each student is required to complete
three, 12-week work periods in a U.S.
construction organization. Recruiting
at Purdue by a wide range of employers, including the largest and most
advanced firms in the U.S., is intense.
Purdue’s CEM degree is respected by
leaders in the construction industry
across the U.S. as one of the best—
many say the best—engineering degree in preparation for a professional
future in construction.
Daniel Halpin, in the “soft hat,” observes the deconstruction of the old Creative Arts huts with CEM students.
5
Impact Fall 2005
behind the scenes
Civil Servants
Amidst the fast pace of CE education, the undergraduate office provides a steady refuge.
Vincent Walter
For the 400 students enrolled in Purdue’s School of Civil Engineering, the undergraduate office is the mother ship. It’s the advising center, the place where classes
are shaped and scheduled, where scholarships are sought and awarded, where a
friendly face helps solve everyday problems and more complicated challenges on
a daily basis, and staples and candy are handed out free.
“The school wanted to restructure how the undergraduate office functioned so that it had
a more service-oriented approach,” says Tammi Thayer, undergraduate program administrator for the school. “Our feedback has been very positive, so we take a lot of pride in that.”
The office on the main floor of the Civil Engineering building is a busy place. The
first stop for a visitor may well be at the desk of Linda Higgins, administrative assistant
by title, mother and friend by action. She is also textbook coordinator, grade reporter,
Coop program/internship/employment assistant, and much more.
“One of the most rewarding areas of my job is the interaction with civil students. I
get to know many of them well,” says Higgins, who has worked in the office for seven
years. “Students come to share their successes, just say hello, and some have even
taken me to lunch. They are excited upon graduation to introduce me to their parents
as their ‘Mom away from home.’”
She is much more than Mom, though. In response to frequent calls from employers
seeking to hire the school’s graduates, Higgins helped to develop a valuable employment web site that was originally a list of corporate contacts. It is now a database that
allows employers to log in with a password and post job descriptions and company
information and keeps students up-to-date on job opportunities.
The back office is run by Thayer and Maeve Drummond, who job-share and handle
a multitude of responsibilities. Drummond is curriculum deputy and schedule deputy,
duties that involve arranging each semester’s course schedule, wrestling with such
details as ensuring that
civil engineering class
times don’t conflict
with popular courses
outside of the school,
setting enrollment
capacity, and ushering
new courses through
the development stage.
The staff of the
undergraduate office
consists of Higgins,
Thayer, Drummond,
and James Meyers,
assistant head for
Undergraduate
Programs. Many of
Left to right: Tammi Thayer, Jim Meyers, Maeve Drummond,
the responsibilities of
and Linda Higgins.
the office are accom-
6
Purdue Civil Engineering
plished through a team effort with different members of the staff taking the
lead in different areas. For example,
Thayer administers the school’s scholarship program, but the entire staff
discusses award criteria and helps
evaluate applicants. She also administers the Civil Engineering Ambassadors
Program, a student recruitment effort
that everyone helps pull off.
This team approach has also resulted
in the creation of a new course for
freshmen interested in civil engineering. This course, “Civil Engineering in
Action,” has had capacity enrollments
(60 this year) for the three years that
it has been offered. Although Meyers
leads this effort, he is quick to point out
the very significant involvement of all
staff members.
While the office is always busy,
there are intense crunch periods when
incoming sophomores arrive in August
and during registration times. Thayer
humbly acknowledges limiting herself
to no more than 10 30-minute advising
appointments a day during that period.
“The undergraduate office is an exciting
place to be. It definitely can be very hectic
and busy at times, but the interaction with
students, the faculty and staff, as well as
working with industry contacts make for
a rewarding experience,” Higgins says.
Currently the undergraduate office
is going through a period of transition
with Meyers retiring at the end of
December 2005 and faculty member
Steve Johnson taking over leadership
of the office. In addition, Drummond
has accepted a new position as
administrator of the Graduate Office,
and a new member of the team is
being recruited.
—Linda Terhune
in my view
Energy Demands
Nicholas J. Aschliman (BSCE ’68) is vice president of Fugro Consultants LP.
Personal experience says that there is clearly a place for a Purdue civil engineer in
the bustling world of energy. Many years have lapsed since the “green grad” moved to
Houston to join the nascent environmental unit of a major oil refining company. Sudden
emphasis on a cleaner earth cast the young engineer into unexplored dimensions of
wastewater treatment, conservation, permitting, economics, and public communications. Fortunately, the broad base of civil engineering coupled with visionary insights of
special, Purdue professors created the right combination for the opportunities at hand.
That was then. By comparison, the challenges associated with today’s energy
situation far surpass those of the earlier environmental frontier. Consequently, the
future of a civil engineer entering the energy field has never looked better. But it will
be different.
With dwindling supplies of abundant energy in “easy to find” places; surging
global demand; higher risks and greater project complexity; plus a certain degree of
urgency, a new day has dawned on the industry—and on each of us for that matter.
Looking at the supply side, exploration and development of fossil fuel sources
are taking engineers and scientists into increasingly remote, harsh areas. This presents unique obstacles for surveying, site access/improvements, equipment support,
and project infrastructure. For the largest projects, entire cities—far from current
civilization—are being built to accommodate job site personnel. Civil engineering is
in the middle of the action.
In the processing arena, civil engineers lay the groundwork and design structures for production facilities, refining units, petrochemical plants, emission controls,
product storage, and shipping. All aspects of civil engineering come into play in
siting and building facilities, which satisfy safety and production requirements; international quality standards; and environmental limits.
As production and processing sites mover farther away, increased emphasis is
placed on shipping and distribution. Civil engineers examine new sites for terminals,
pipelines and rail; survey, engineer, and manage construction of mega-facilities;
and participate in maintenance and operations.
And, of course, there is the demand side of the business. Increased consumption
of motor fuels and electrical power spurs the need for more efficient and intelligent
transportation systems; fuel-saving pavement technologies; power generation; and
electrical transmission. Following closely are renewed looks at nuclear power, grainto-alcohol, coal/shale, wind, and hydroelectric power. Indeed, there’s a strong
place for civil engineering in each and every alternative being addressed.
In upcoming years, engineers from around the world representing multiple
disciplines including petroleum, chemical, mechanical, electrical, and of course,
civil/environmental will work together in unprecedented ways. Teams will confer
with financiers, attorneys, risk managers, and political representatives in a variety
of cultures to accomplish projects via experimental project delivery methods. There
will not be many dull days.
Photo courtesy of Fugro Consultants LP
Civil engineers will have adapted roles in the world of energy.
Nicholas J. Aschliman (BSCE ’68) is vice
president of Fugro Consultants LP.
Undergirding the whole process will
be sound research and technology like
that coming out of Purdue. Traditional
building blocks of math and science
equip the engineer to work directly in
energy exploration and production, if
that becomes a chosen career path.
Specialization in geomatics, structures,
geotechnics, construction materials,
environmental sciences, and construction management provide further skills
in other areas of problem solving.
In conclusion, the world’s burgeoning
energy needs call for enlightened engineering and management solutions.
Fortunately, Purdue civil engineers will
be ready to deliver powerful answers.
—Nicholas Aschliman, P.E.
7
Impact Fall 2005
John Haddock, an associate professor of civil
engineering, and Brandon Celaya, a master’s
student, are focused on the asphalt.
8
Purdue Civil Engineering
Better roads through better asphalt and efficient
maintenance practices can lead to energy savings.
Sometimes a bump in the road is just an aggravating start to a Monday
morning commute. But if your well-traveled road is too well-worn, it
can quickly lead to wear and tear on your car. On the other hand, a
smooth road will not only keep your coffee in your cup, but put you on
course for energy savings.
John Haddock, an associate professor of civil engineering, is trying to engineer better
roads. His success may lie in the asphalt. The liquid asphalt used to build hot-mix asphalt
(HMA) pavements comes from crude oil, Haddock says, “the bottom of the barrel.”
The less asphalt we use to build roads, the more fossil fuel we save, he says. “When
asphalt refining first began, the residual material, or bottom of the barrel, was seen
as waste by gasoline refiners. They were glad to be rid of it for use in refining asphalt.
However, over the years, refining methods have improved and much of the residual
material can now be refined for ‘high-end’ products such as gasoline and jet fuel. Although
it costs more to refine the residuals into gasoline, when gasoline prices rise, it becomes
cost effective. So, even the crude oil used for asphalt becomes more expensive.”
In essence, if engineers can uncover better ways to make HMA roads last longer,
less asphalt and thus less crude oil will be used. This goal of developing technology
to be used in constructing stronger, more durable HMA pavements has been a primary
focus of research being done at Purdue and funded by the Indiana Department of
Transportation (INDOT) through the Joint Research Transportation Program.
In one such effort, Haddock looked at how initial pavement density affects the performance of HMA pavements. During the project, laboratory performance of fatigue, permanent deformation (rutting), permeability, and moisture susceptibility were measured
on HMA specimens compacted to various densities. Although the results have not yet
been published, according to Haddock, it is known that when the density of HMA is
increased, it becomes more durable and lasts longer. This project tried to quantify the
improvements so that user agencies would have the tools to make informed decisions.
9
Impact Fall 2005
“Improving roads helps conserve energy in several ways,” Haddock says.
“First, research appears to indicate that
smoother roads contribute to better
vehicle fuel economy. Second, if HMA
pavements can be made to last longer,
the time intervals for periodic maintenance, or major rehabilitation, can be
lengthened, thus producing a savings
in construction energy consumption.
Third, if HMA pavements can be made
to last longer, then less asphalt binder
is needed. Asphalt binder is refined
from petroleum, so its decrease leads
directly to energy savings.”
In another project, the National
Cooperative Highway Research
Program funded Purdue to perform
research in hopes of discovering a
more efficient way to determine which
layers in an HMA pavement have failed.
In other words, what layer caused the
rutting in an individual road? Where
did the deformation come from?
Traditionally, the only way to diagnose
which layer in the pavement failed was
to cut a trench across the road thus exposing the damaged layer. This method
is expensive, and requires the road
to be closed. The result is increased
fuel consumption as motorists must
be stopped, or detoured around the
work. This project developed a simple,
efficient method that makes use of a
computer program to determine which
road layer has failed. Instead of physically digging a trench, a straight edge,
typically 12 feet long, is placed across
the road in question. The straight edge
is used to produce a road profile that,
when entered into a spreadsheet, is
able to show what layer has failed. This
allows for efficient repairs, saving both
the user agency and the traveling public
time and energy.
Another research being completed
by Haddock and funded by INDOT
involves the mixing and compaction
temperatures of HMA. In order to produce HMA pavements, liquid asphalt
10
Purdue Civil Engineering
Photos courtesy of John Haddock
cover
The trench in the pavement tells researchers which layer of the pavement has deformed.
In this case, one can clearly see that the deformation, or rutting, has occurred in the
surface layer.
binder must be combined with aggregates in a central mixing plant. This has
traditionally been done at temperatures
in the range of 275-300F. However, a
recent trend is to add polymers to HMA
to increase its durability. This addition
has driven up the temperatures used to
mix and compact the HMA. This burns
more energy and adds to the cost of the
process. INDOT wants to determine if
polymer-modified HMA mixtures can be
produced and placed at lower temperatures without adversely affecting their
performance. Haddock and his graduate students visited job sites where they
gathered materials and HMA mixture
samples. The mixtures were tested in
Purdue’s CE Bituminous Laboratory.
The results, although not yet published,
indicate that lower temperatures can
be used when mixing polymer-modified
HMA, thus saving energy and resulting in a cleaner and more cost-efficient
process.
Other Inroads to Energy Savings
The never-ending quest for long-lasting HMA roads involves research not
only in material technology but also in
the way available resources are used.
Over the years, Kumares Sinha, the
Olson Distinguished Professor of Civil
Engineering, has carried out research in
various areas geared towards ensuring
that the maximum possible quality and
road life are obtained through a variety of
management tools. For example, in a recent project, Sinha, with the assistance of
Samuel Labi, a newly appointed assistant
professor in civil engineering, developed
a software package now being used by
Indiana’s pavement designers to help in
deciding the appropriate designs and
schedules for rehabilitation and maintenance over the life of the road pavement.
Liberal thicknesses and rehabilitation
schedules translate into highest quality
but exorbitant cost. On the other extreme, conservative pavement design
and preservation strategies are inexpensive but yield pavements that typically last only for a short time. To help
INDOT develop balanced and rational
policies, the life-cycle cost analysis
software package considers the costs
of construction and preservation and
the benefits of pavement condition enhancement and longevity to help select
the optimal design and preservation
strategy that offers highest possible
benefits at least cost.
In other research aimed at seeking
cost-effective highway construction practices, Sinha, Labi and Bob McCullouch,
a research scientist, investigated the use
of warranties. “The concept of warranties
shifts the burden of construction quality
control, product performance and product maintenance from the owner to the
contractor,” Sinha says. “Our research
results suggest that warranty projects
yield a product that is generally more
cost-effective in terms of pavement condition and longevity compared to traditional projects and ultimately lead to lower
life-cycle cost.”
The group advised INDOT that warranty practices could be continued as
more warranty projects reach maturation and as more data is made available for future investigations.
In a related research project that
examined the inability to complete
projects on time and within budget,
Sinha and his research team assessed
the extent of the problem of cost overruns, time delays, and change orders
associated with INDOT construction
projects, and determined that such
problems are not only related to factors such as design, unexpected site
conditions, increases in project scope,
weather conditions, but can be predicted from contract administration
parameters such as bid amount and
contract duration. For relatively small
projects (up to $6 million), increasing
bid amounts lead to decreasing cost
overruns while for relatively large projects (over $6 million) increasing bid
amounts lead to increasing cost overruns.
“This may be because as small projects become larger, they attract higherclass contractors and are therefore
managed more efficiently, resulting
in lower cost overruns,” Sinha says.
“However, for large projects, the advantage of higher-class contractors seems
to be outweighed by the management
problems engendered by the multiplicity of subcontractors and communication lapses. The net effect is an
increase in likelihood and amounts of
cost overrun.”
The research also determined that
projects of longer durations are more
likely to incur cost overruns, and that
the cost of each unit time delay in contract completion is 12-fold the savings
of each unit time of early completion.
The results therefore strengthen the
argument for establishing incentives
and bonuses for expeditious contract
execution and maintaining penalties
(liquidated damages) for tardy contract
execution.
In 2003 INDOT executed an ambitious interstate reconstruction project
in Indianapolis, named Hyperfix. This
project completely closed a section of
I-65/70 on which 250,000 vehicles travel
daily. During the 55 days of reconstruction, the main section was completely
closed to traffic, an unprecedented
event that had major effects on traffic
flows in and around the city. Sinha and
his colleagues analyzed the impact of
the project on construction management,
traffic management, local businesses,
and public safety, and made recommendations that serve as a useful guide in
managing future undertakings of similar
scale and scope.
In the end, getting us from point A to
point B smoother—through improved
roads, fewer roadblocks, and even less
red tape—makes not only for a safer
trip, but a better energy-saving plan.
—Suzanne Karberg and W.M.
Sinha confers with graduate students in CE’s Transportation Computational Lab.
He has also analyzed large-scale highway overhauls. In the Hyperfix, for example,
crews working around the clock can save time and money. INDOT’s decision to
completely close the section of highway where I-65 and I-70 converge took the
reconstruction from 180 days to 55 days.
11
Impact Fall 2005
feature
Hard-Hatted Women
Purdue’s Construction Engineering and Management program is helping more
young women break into fields once reserved for men.
Fast Track Safety
Amanda Fryzlewicz is not trespassing (as the sign might suggest), but working on an
internship in downtown Indianapolis.
The construction industry has long
been regarded as a rough and rugged business where a man’s strong
back, hard hat, and thick skin are often
akin to the structures he helps raise.
In an increasingly diversified world,
however, more and more women are
throwing their hats into the construction game. And the folks in Purdue’s
Division of Construction Engineering
and Management (CEM) are helping to
shape that change.
For Bryan Hubbard, director of
CEM’s renowned internship program,
it’s a change much welcomed. “We
continue to bring women students into
our department,” he says. “In the end,
the added diversity will help improve
the construction industry.”
Hubbard spends much of his summer checking in with the students and
sponsor companies at construction
worksites all over the country. CEM stu-
12
Purdue Civil Engineering
dents are required to work three summer internships before they graduate.
This year 134 students worked on sites
in 22 states, including Hawaii. One
student even worked on an industrial
facilities site in Mexico. The experience
usually pays off for them. Since 1987,
CEM has placed 100 percent of their
graduates into jobs, many of them with
their internship sponsor firms.
There’s also ample opportunity for a
broad range of experience, Hubbard
says. “Our students are on sites helping build everything from heavy civil
projects, like bridges and roads, to
offices, to commercial sites such as
schools and hospitals, to industrial
sites like power plants.”
Jerrilyn O’Brien (near right), a junior in construction engineering management, and
Julia Spadaccini, a master’s student in civil
engineering, talk strategy on site of the
I-465 “Fast Track” project in Indianapolis.
Many sites provide research opportunities for graduate students as well.
Julia Spadaccini, a master’s student in
civil engineering, was able to observe
and provide quantitative information
regarding production and safety at an
Indianapolis I-465 “Fast Track” project—
where bonus-driven construction companies work through nights to complete
a section of highway in record time.
Dulcy Abraham, a professor of civil
engineering and construction engineering and management, serves
as Spadaccini’s major professor.
She’s working with both the National
Institute of Occupational Safety and
Health and the Indiana Department
of Transportation on safety practices
in construction. “We can be very safe
within the timeframe,” Abraham says,
“but if the work is not getting done within the timeframe then the whole issue of
doing it at night is defeated.”
Spadaccini will link on-site observations of nighttime construction operations
and surveys of nighttime workers and
project owners with variables like the
safety record of the company, the experience of the workers, and the type of safety equipment used. Ultimately, she’ll be
able to provide the company with quantifiable data that can be used to improve
both productivity and safety practices.
She’s also working with three undergraduate students on the research project.
Breaking the Glass Ceiling
Will this type of experience put
Spadaccini and her female classmates
on the fast track in the construction
business? “I think there’s a glass ceiling, but the environment is a lot more
open to having women at all levels than
it was five years ago,” Abraham says.
“Many women are making their way up
through the ranks, starting as a field or
project engineer. That adds credibility
Haley Hypes, a junior in construction engineering and management, worked at a
commericial site on the north side of Indianapolis.
to the leadership roles that women now
undertake in this industry.”
Anne Bigane Wilson (BSCEM ’79)
had planned on such a career path. A
graduate of the inaugural CEM class,
Wilson went to work for her sponsor
firm Rieth-Riley right out of Purdue. In
the mid-1980s, she joined her father
at Bigane Paving in Chicago, and felt
well supported to learn the ropes of the
family business. When her father died
suddenly, however, she found herself
suddenly at the helm.
“I was exposed to the negative early,”
Wilson says. “As the oldest of five girls,
the common assumption was that we
would sell the business after my father
died.”
She persevered, though, as has
the company, which is now a fourth-
generation family firm specializing in
asphalt paving and site development.
In 2000, Wilson won a Governor’s
Small Business Award as a “Person
of the Year.” She’s also a founding
member and past president of the
Federation of Women Contractors.
Today, Wilson sits on the advisory
council for CEM. Her advice for young
women entering the construction workforce: “Look for mentors, both male
and female,” she says. “It can be a bit
daunting in a male-dominated field, but
construction offers the thrill of seeing
the products you build.”
Because a worker’s pride in a skyline’s new high-rise, or even a highway
overhauled, can surely be enjoyed by
either gender.
—W.M.
13
Impact Fall 2005
up close: students
Expanded Views
Photos courtesy of Brandon Stutzman and Julia Watkins
Three CEM students gain more than experience with time spent in Guadalajara.
Left to right: Brandon Stutzman, Julia Watkins,
Bryan Hubbard, and Evan Wisthuff.
For three students studying abroad, the chance to bolster new language skills and
take in a new culture, all while gaining knowledge of construction trends, should situate them better in a globalizing marketplace. Such has been the case for Brandon
Stutzman, Julia Watkins, and Evan Wisthuff, the trio of construction engineering and
management seniors who spent two weeks in Guadalajara, Mexico, last summer.
“Each day there I engaged in conversations with Mexican students, participated
in their classes, and heard various lectures in English on the Mexican government,
politics, construction companies, housing, culture, and history,” says Stutzman.
“After the classes, some students and professors would take us to either a job site or
company office to see how construction work is managed and performed in Mexico.”
From visits to a government housing site where around 4,000 small, concrete houses were being built in a subdivision to visits to hospital, warehouse, and high-income
housing sites, the students saw a variety of buildings on the rise in a rapidly evolving
country. For Wisthuff, an education in the Spanish language and Latin culture are valuable assets for construction jobs in the United States. “On my
first summer CEM internship in Richmond, Virginia, I noticed
that about 40 percent of the workers spoke Spanish and very
From visits to a government housing site where around 4,000 small, concrete houses were being built in a subdivision to visits to
hospital, warehouse, and high-income housing sites, the students saw a variety of buildings on the rise.
14
Purdue Civil Engineering
Photo courtesy of BMOC
Left to right: Jessie Rykels, George
Hwang (the Big Man on Campus 2005),
and Megan Burke.
BMOC
little English,” he says. “I was in Guadalajara to learn, so I tried to learn
as much as I could.” Wisthuff also had additional incentive because
he stayed in Mexico (Juarez, specifically) for a summer internship with
Graycor, a Chicago-based construction firm.
Julia Watkins says it’s an experience she will always treasure. She really
values the opportunity she had to learn the economic and political characteristics of Mexico while studying the potential for growth in a growing construction market. “Going to classes at Panamericana University,
living with other students, taking the job site tours,” she says. “It was all
very culturally rewarding.”
And all three suggest that their CEM colleagues look into learning
opportunities abroad. Says Stutzman, “I would highly recommend
study abroad to anyone who wants to get involved with large, international contractors, work outside the U.S., or simply acquire a broader
view of the world.”
—S.K.
Photo courtesy of Purdue ASCE student chapter
Professional Societies
Students raise money to fight
breast cancer.
Megan Burke and Jessie Rykels, both
seniors in the civil engineering, put their
right brains to the test last February,
when they organized Purdue’s largest
Greek-sponsored philanthropy, Big Man
on Campus (BMOC). The event featured
22 Purdue male students showcasing
their talents and answering questions
in pageant-like style. The week leading
up to the show featured Penny Wars, a
sheet sign competition, t-shirt and ticket
sales competition, and a “boiler-pop”
competition at the Boiler Market.
With over 1,500 students, parents,
and faculty in attendance, BMOC
raised over $33,500 for breast cancer
awareness and research and was a highlight of Rykel’s and Burke’s college experience. “It was challenging trying to
balance school work with the committee
meetings and planning of BMOC, but
the hope that our efforts may help educate people about breast cancer made
the late nights worth it,” says Burke.
Career Fair
ASCE sponsors the Concrete Canoe Competition each year.
ASCE has been awarded a 2005 Letter of Honorable Mention. The Chapter was
recommended for this award by the Committee on Student Activities based on the
enthusiasm and hard work of the student officers. Visit their website at bridge.ecn.
purdue.edu/~asce/.
Concrete Institute (ACI–Purdue) was established in August 2004 to bridge the
gap between academic learning and professional practice in the construction industry. During this first year the members participated in the international ACI student
competition in New York City, winning first prize for the best prediction of failure load
and deformation. Visit their website at bridge.ecn.purdue.edu/~concrete/.
The Civil Engineering Student
Advisory Council (CESAC) hosted the
2005 Civil Engineering Career Fair
on Tuesday, September 27, 2005. A
record number of over 70 companies
visited Purdue Civil Engineering for this
job fair. Students representing every
discipline within Civil Engineering, including Construction Engineering and
Management and Land Surveying and
Geomatics Engineering, at both the
undergraduate and graduate levels can
expect to meet recruiters from various
companies throughout the country looking to hire both interns and graduates.
15
Impact Fall 2005
up close: faculty
Nearly a month after Hurricane Katrina forced them to leave, Warren and Bessie Frosch returned home to
near-total devastation.
Historic Damage
Hurricane Katrina hits the family and home of a civil engineering professor,
displacing family members while erasing several sites and mementos of their past.
Reared in New Orleans, Purdue civil engineering associate
professor Robert Frosch hopes to use his structural engineering expertise to help repair and rebuild the areas of Louisiana left
devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
Frosch’s heritage in the New Orleans area dated to the 1800s.
He grew up with hurricanes, as did his parents, grandparents,
and great-grandparents.
When Frosch accepted a position at Purdue, he became one of the first in his
extended family to leave the area. A graduate of Tulane University, he observed the
levee systems, floodgates, and drainage systems under construction as a child in
New Orleans. In fact, as an undergraduate student he interned working on part of
the levee systems in the area.
“I was fascinated by the structures,” he says. “It’s what got me into civil engineering.
I wanted to understand how everything worked.”
Frosch was carrying on a family tradition. His great-great-grandfather worked in
construction in New Orleans.
“We’ve been Louisiana residents for as long as anybody in our family can remember,”
says Warren Frosch, Robert’s father. “My great-grandfather helped put up the Robert E.
16
Purdue Civil Engineering
Lee statue in downtown New Orleans.
Several of the ropes failed, and he was
the only person to keep holding on. He
lifted the statue by himself to its final
position as it stands today. In doing so,
though, he broke his back and died
several days later.”
The family history took a new turn after
Katrina. Their homes destroyed and
with no return to the area in the foreseeable future, Frosch’s extended family
is scattered across five states. Warren
and his wife, Bessie, are staying with
Robert and his wife, Maria, in West
Lafayette. Other aunts, uncles, and
cousins have found temporary housing
in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and
Texas.
Background photo courtesy of Department of Defense
Photos courtesy of Robert Frosch
Robert Frosch, an associate professor of civil engineering, takes a break from the recovery effort.
“We’ve been through a lot of hurricanes in the past,” says Bessie. “We
did intend to leave because Katrina
looked like such a massive storm on
the satellite, and then my sister called
at 3:30 a.m. and said we better leave
soon. We packed our things, but if I’d
known then what I know now I would
have packed a lot more of our things.
I had our wedding photos and Bible in
my hands, but Warren said, ‘Leave it,
we’ll be back in a couple of days.’”
The couple left St. Bernard’s Parish
near New Orleans at 5:30 a.m. and
arrived in West Lafayette around 9 p.m.
that night.
“Those two days turned into five
weeks,” Bessie said.
Since the disaster struck on August
29, Robert has kept abreast of the disaster through the Internet. Katrina, a
Category 5 hurricane, left more than a
million people homeless, 1,302 dead,
and a range of $70 to $130 billion in
damages. It is considered the worst
natural disaster to hit America. It will
be years before the areas affected can
rebound.
“I watched a whole way of life disappear,” he says. “My childhood neighborhood in New Orleans went under
water, my high school, entire parishes,
such as St. Bernard’s—everything disappeared under water.”
“We kept asking ourselves, ‘What can
we do? Where should we go? What’s
going to happen to us?’” Bessie says.
“I sit and cry all the time, but that’s not
going to change anything but is just a
way to release my emotions.”
On September 26, the Frosches
rented a truck and drove back to their
old neighborhood. Upon their arrival,
Bessie had her keys ready to unlock
the front door of their three-bedroom,
two-bath ranch-style home, but the
door was gone and the frame had
splintered—a gaping hole stood in
its place.
“We found the door frame and sidelight in the kitchen,” she says.
“We also found a tree, a dead fish and
a live frog in the house,” says Robert.
“The floor and all the counters were covered with muck residue.”
They heard that Canadian Mounties
were the first to visit the area after
Katrina hit.
“While we were there, a FEMA representative stopped by to see what we
were doing and warned us not to take
any of our clothes because of the mold,”
Bessie says. “We had soldiers stop by
several times to check on us and see
if we needed water, food or medical
supplies.”
The water stain marks on the walls of
the house reached more than five feet.
“It was just total devastation, and I
can’t say it any better than that,” Bessie
says.
Working for 10 days, Bessie, Warren,
Robert, and Maria salvaged what they
could and piled the vast majority of
their ruined articles, clothing, and furniture on their front lawn.
“We were advised that we didn’t even
need flood insurance for our area, but
we had some anyway,” Warren says.
“Still it isn’t enough to cover our losses.”
“We’re on a limited income, and we
can’t start over,” Bessie adds. “We
don’t know what we’re going to do.”
For now, the focus is on salvaging
a lifetime of photos, many water-stained
beyond recognition but just as many
capturing the memories of past holidays,
Boy Scout uniforms, First Communion,
and other precious moments.
Robert is ready to use his skill as a
structural engineer to help rebuild his
childhood city.
“I have already contacted people in
the area and offered my services,” he
says.
—S.K. and Cynthia Sequin
17
Impact Fall 2005
campaign impact
Building CE
Gifts to The Campaign for Purdue help raise the value of a civil engineering education.
As we complete the fifth year of our seven-year Campaign for Purdue, we continue to be amazed by the generosity of our civil engineering alumni and friends. Gift
totals for the school increased by over 17 percent from the previous fiscal year for a
grand total of $3,529,902. We have also reached 71 percent of our total campaign
goal of $31,600,000 for support of students, faculty, programs and centers, facilities, and unrestricted monies.
With the completion (in 2003) of the Robert L. and Terry L. Bowen Laboratory for
Large-scale Civil Engineering Research, we now turn our attention to the renovation
of the current civil facilities, including lab space, housing for CE Centers and technical programs, and team-learning modules. Another key focus during this time is to
increase in the number of faculty professorships, undergraduate scholarships, and
graduate fellowships.
We’ve raised $2.4 million of the $4 million goal for endowed scholarships and
fellowships. This endowment income will allow the school to increase the number of
undergraduate scholarships by 30 percent and the number of graduate scholarships
and fellowships by 50 percent.
Endowed professorships are a critical incentive to attract and retain outstanding
faculty. The campaign has a goal of raising $8 million for professorships, enabling
20 percent of our faculty to hold endowed professorships, which is reasonable and
comparable to the target set by other top civil engineering programs in the country.
We’ve raised $6.7 million toward that goal.
The school has numerous affiliated programs and centers. These centers provide
a focus for research and dissemination activities and will play a key role in achieving
the school’s educational and research goals. The campaign has raised $1.9 million
of the $2.6 million goal for civil programs and centers.
Although the School of Civil Engineering currently occupies over half of one of the
largest buildings on campus, the school’s current space is inadequate. The goal
Campaign Progress to Date
Scholarships
Faculty support
6.7
Facilities
8.0
Programs
1.9
Unrestricted
3.5
0
Raised to date
4.0
2.4
Campaign goal
8.0
12.0
2.6
5.0
2
4
Millions of dollars
6
8
10
12
Robert L. and Terry L. Bowen Laboratory for Large-scale Civil Engineering Research
18
Purdue Civil Engineering
of raising $12 million for facilities will go
a long way in this endeavor. The Bowen
Laboratory, the first large construction
project of the campaign, is among the
best in the nation, allowing Purdue to
reach new levels of excellence in infrastructure research. As additional space
becomes available elsewhere on campus and at the Bowen lab, our school
will be able to occupy more of the existing Civil Engineering building. As part
of this campaign effort a renovation is
needed. This expansion into new space
will enable Civil Engineering to transform
undergraduate labs into premier sites for
hands-on exploration and support new
technologies that enhance exploration,
teaching, and learning, as they facilitate
collaboration between students, faculty,
practitioners, and guest speakers.
The most forward-thinking plans cannot possibly anticipate every need and
opportunity that will arise. That’s why
gifts of unrestricted funds are critical
to the future success of the school. In
the past, unrestricted funds have been
used to award undergraduate scholarships, provide competitive start-up
packages for new faculty recruits, update laboratory facilities, allow students
to attend national conferences, and
support student organizations and competitions such as Concrete Canoe and
Steel Bridge. The campaign hopes to
raise $5 million of unrestricted monies.
The school’s success depends upon
the contributions of all its stakeholders—
corporate partners, faculty, students and
their parents, state and national constituents, and alumni. This successful
campaign will enable the School of Civil
Engineering to continue its tradition of excellence and fulfill its promise to become
the nation’s top civil engineering program.
—Cindy Lawley
up close: alumni
Yes Man
“Yes” to a night dispatcher job, “Yes” to one semester of college after another
while working, and “Yes” to a year away from home to gain new skills took Philip
Stutes (MSCE ’75) up the ladder of success.
Climbing each rung of seized opportunity, he stands today at the helm of 304employee Fugro Chance Inc., which has enjoyed double-digit growth in recent
years. The Lafayette, Louisiana-based marine surveying company, a division of
multinational Fugro, supports North and South American oil and gas development.
“Being named president of an organization I grew up from a baby in, I’m proof
there’s upward mobility,” says Stutes. One of four children of a machinery salesman,
he grew up in Rayne, Louisiana. After his 1966 high school graduation, he enrolled
in the University of Southwestern Louisiana, now the University of Louisiana at
Lafayette, not sure what he wanted to do.
“My older brother studied civil engineering, so I said, ‘Well, I’ll just try that.’ I always
envisioned a job working outdoors some of the time. It was a lucky stroke,” he says
of his decision.
Taking a job manning radios at night in May 1968 so he could continue his
education proved to be another bit of luck. The company was John E. Chance &
Associates, predecessor to the company that’s been his employer ever since and
which he now heads.
Earning his degree in 1971—“I was an early trendsetter, taking five years to finish”—
Stutes continued climbing the Chance ladder. One day in 1974, coming ashore
from work in the Gulf of Mexico, he was called to the boss’s office. “We want you
to go to school,” he was told, and given his pick of Ohio State or Purdue University.
Choosing Purdue was life-changing, Stutes says.
“That was when the Transit Satellite Navigation System was being released to the
general public. John Chance realized no one in the company had the skills to deal
with this technology.”
Stutes’ instructions were to audit a few appropriate classes. Instead, he enrolled
as a full-time student, believing, “A half of a master’s would be better than none.”
At the end of his first semester, as he, his wife and four young children prepared
to return home, “Purdue called my boss and said, ‘If you let him stay another
semester, he can take 18 hours and earn a master’s.’”
The boss said “Yes,” and so did Stutes.
“My year at Purdue was wonderful. What I took were practical classes I applied
as soon as I came back to work. We bought several satellite systems, I figured
out how to use them, and taught others in the company,” he says. “As the years
passed, I became in charge of the offshore division, then general manager of the
company, and then president in 1994.”
August 2005’s Hurricane Katrina hit close to home, escalating the company’s
already busy workload. “As big as that storm was, there was still a fairly small
percentage of production in the Gulf that was affected,” he says.
He believes production there will continue for some time. “I think there’s a lot of
energy yet undiscovered in the Gulf of Mexico,” he says. “There’s not enough to
Photo courtesy of Fugro Chance Inc.
Seized opportunities take Stutes to the top.
Philip Stutes (MSCE ’75) CEO of Fugro
Chance, Inc.
meet the United States’ needs. But
we’ve gone deeper and made tremendous finds. While it’s a mature energy
province, there are still a lot of reserves
to be found in the Gulf, and we have
better techniques for extracting and
exploiting them.”
—Kathy Mayer
19
Impact Fall 2005
alumni news
CEAAA ’04
John Underwood
Congratulations to recipients of the 2004 Civil Engineering Alumni Achievement Award
presented in February of this year.
The 2004 Civil Engineering Alumni Achievement Award recipients (from left to right): Evan Nyer, Susan Frey, Nicholas Aschliman,
Robert Shanks, and Richard O’Connor.
Class Notes
Geza Cseri (BSCE 59)—McLean,
VA—Geza has retired from the Federal
Government Service and was awarded
the Distinguished Civilian Award. He
is a consultant to the Department of
Homeland Security.
Pierre Lacroix (PhD 71)—Quebec,
CANADA—Pierre, who was a founder
of Bioxel Pharma, has retired from the
presidency of that firm. He will continue to serve the corporation as special
20
Purdue Civil Engineering
advisor while also retaining his seat on
the Board of Directors. Bioxel Pharma
is a leading manufacturer of naturally
derived taxanes and targeted oncology drugs used in the development
of therapeutic drugs for the treatment
of cancer and other diseases, including psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis,
Alzheimer’s disease, and cardiovascular disease.
Robert W. Shanks (BSCE 75, MSCE
76)—St. Louis, MO—Bob has been
named president of Arch Coal’s Eastern
operations. Since 1998, Bob has
served as president of Arch’s western subsidiary, which includes one of
the world’s largest and most productive surface mines and three highly
productive longwall operations. He is a
former chairman of the Bituminous Coal
Operators Association and a past chairman of the Illinois Coal Association.
James Lambrechts (MSCE 76)—
Charlestown, MA—Jim was awarded
the 2005 Ralph W. Horne Award by
the Boston Society of Civil Engineers
Section (BSCES). This award recognizes individuals who have been
outstanding in unpaid public service
in elected or appointed government
posts, or in philanthropic activitiy in the
public interest. For decades, Professor
Lambrechts has researched, published,
and actively addressed the public
about problems caused by lowered
groundwater levels and their potential solutions. For the last 10 years, he
has served, pro bono, as the Boston
Groundwater Trust’s consulting geotechnical engineer.
and groundwater. His other major writing over the years has
been the column “Treatment Technology,” published in
Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation for the past 20
years. Evan is currently a senior vice president for Arcadis
G&M, Inc., a worldwide infrastructure and environmental consulting firm. He is in the midst of building the largest biological
treatment system for ground water remediation in the world.
Richard T. O’Connor (BSCE 1974, MSCE 1975) A
small-town boy from southwestern Indiana, Dick’s interest in
math and science and admiration of the pioneers of landmark skyscraper and large river crossing steered him to civil
engineering at Purdue. Dick currently serves as senior vice
president and treasurer of RQAW Corporation, a multidisciplined engineering and architectural firm. He has worked on
converting conventional bridges into cable-stayed structure
and designed Indiana’s only curved steel box girder structure.
In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the State of
Indiana, Governor Joe Kerman named Dick a Sagamore of
the Wabash on January 9, 2005.
Robert W. Shanks (BSCE 1975, MSCE 1976) From
a young age, Bob planned to study civil engineering. After
coming to Purdue his focus shifted from building bridges to
hydrology and water resource engineering. After working for
several years on hydrologic impact studies, pollution control
and land reclamation projects, Bob’s shifted to the operational side of the business. In March of 2005, he was named
president of Arch Coal’s eastern operations. Arch Coal is the
nation’s second largest coal producer and mines low-sulfur
coal exclusively. Through its subsidiary operations in West
Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah,
Arch provides the fuel for approximately seven percent of the
electricity generated in the United States.
Joseph M. Cibor (BSCE 76, MSCE
78)—Silver Spring, MD—Joe has
been elected president of the
Engineers’ Leadership Foundation.
The Foundation was established to
foster the development of engineering leaders. He is president of Fugro
Consultants LP, a 400-person geotechnical engineering firm headquartered in
Houston, Texas.
Ed Haslam (BSCE 87, MSCE 88)—San
Mateo, CA—Ed has been named vice
president of product marketing for
Orbital Data. He brings more than 18
years of experience in product management and market strategy from
companies including Sybase, Red
Brick, and Inktomi. Prior to Orbital Data,
Ed was the head of product marketing
at Composite Software, an enterprise
information software company, where
he oversaw the company’s entry into
the marketplace and spearheaded its
product and marketing efforts.
Jeffrey S. Russell (MSCE 86, PhD
88)—Madison, WI—Jeff was awarded
▼
▼
Nicholas J. Aschliman (BSCE 1968) A television ad
introduced a boy from modest Swiss heritage to civil engineering—becoming a civil engineer then became his childhood dream. Through his studies at Purdue, Nick gained
appreciation of the interplay among science, engineering,
business, and public interest. That knowledge serves him
well today as vice president of Fugro Consultants, LLP, a
company that provides advice to over 50 countries worldwide
on the earth’s surface and the soils and rocks underneath for
purposes related to the oil and gas industry, the mining industry, and the construction industry.
Susan M. Frey (BSCE 1976, MSCE 1977) Working alongside her parents and four brothers in the family business in
Hobart, Indiana, Sue began to excel in math and science.
Part way through her freshman year at Purdue, where she
was enrolled in chemistry, when a dorm mate suggested that
the School of Civil Engineering needed a second female student, the die was cast. Sue has been employed for 28 years
by CH2M Hill, a multidiscipline engineering firm specializing
in environmental, municipal, and transportation infrastructure.
Sue’s career expanded to Oregon State University where she
has been an adjunct faculty member since the early 1990s,
teaching masonry building and code design. Sue now serves
as a senior technical resource for CH2M Hill’s firm-wide
design organization as well as a multidiscipline design
manager.
Evan K. Nyer (BSE 1973, MSE 1974) The decision to
specialize in environmental engineering at Purdue was one
that Evan credits to Ralph Nadar and the inaccuracy of his
books. After learning the facts at Purdue, Evans’ first book,
Ground Water Treatment Technology, came out in 1986
followed by four other books, all on the remediation of soils
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Impact Fall 2005
alumni news
In Memoriam
2005
1930s
Gordon G. Beemer
BSCE 1930 • Winnetka, IL
J. Wayne Gredericks
BSCE 1938 • Bronxville, NY
Robert O. Jackson
BSCE 1939 • Indianapolis, IN
Frank Milner
BSCE 1937 • Sun City Centre, FL
Boyd C. Ostroot
BSCE 1939 • Portage, IN
Philip J. Schriner
BSCE 1937 • Kankakee, IL
1940s
William L. Altherr
BSCE 1948 • Lafayette, IN
William A. Darling
BSCE 1942 • Fort Wayne, IN
Robert T. Douglass
BSCE 1946 • Dayton, OH
Joel M. Field, Sr.
BSCE 1949 • Louisville, KY
Paul W. Freitag, Jr.
BSCE 1944 • Barrington, IL
Edward Goetze
BSCE 1947 • St. Joseph, IL
Robert W. Grass
BSCE 1947 • Mattoon, IL
Tom L. Greenwood
BSCE 1942 • Midland, TX
J. Kenneth Kolbrook
BSCE 1948 • Louisville, KY
Alfred D. Land, Jr.
BSCE 1941 • Mentor, OH
Irving E. Linderman
BSCE 1940 • Indianapolis, IN
Safford W. McMyler
BSCE 1944 • Neenah, WI
James H. Miller
BSCE 1949 • Anacortes, WA
Robert L. Perkins
BSCE 1947 • Houston, TX
Frank D. Raycher
BSCE 1949 • Conway, AR
Marion B. Scott
MSCE 1944 • Williamsport, PA
Robert L. Stein
BSCE 1943 • Mount Prospect,
IL
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a Presidential Award for Excellence
in Science, Mathematics, and
Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM) in
Washington, D.C. The National Science
Foundation administers the award on
behalf of the White House. The award
recognizes those who encourage
people from traditionally underrepresented groups, including women and
minorities, to participate in science
and engineering. Jeff is passionate
about developing future leaders from
underrepresented groups. His mentoring efforts couple a local “one-on-one”
22
Purdue Civil Engineering
Bertram A. Weinshenker
BSCE 1942 • Albuquerque, NM
Richard B. Wetzel
BSCE 1949 • Indianapolis, IN
1950s
George M. Briggs
BSCE 1952 • Maple Valley, WA
Murray F. Burnette
BSCE 1951, MSCE 1960 •
Huntsville, AL
Robert L. Buschman
BSCE 1950 • Orange City, FL
John J. Contarino
BSCE 1950 • Lynchburg, VA
Michael C. Gasaway
BSCE 1952 • Westmont, IL
Gerald E. Keerbs
BSCE 1956 • Los Angeles, CA
Theodore F. Miller
BSCE 1952 • Decatur, IL
Robert P. Peeler
BSCE 1953 • Indianapolis, IN
Andrew L. Poulos
BSCE 1952 • Lake Worth, FL
approach with “global” participation.
Nationally, Jeff has led and participated in initiatives to increase awareness
of and publicize diversity issues within
engineering education and practice.
Julie Roehm (BSCE 93)—Auburn Hills,
MI—Julie, the Director of Marketing
Coummunications for Chrysler, Jeep
and Dodge, has been named one of
the 100 Leading Women in the North
American Automotive Industry. In her
role, she oversees the sixth-largest
advertising budget in the United States.
Frank W. Raymond
BSCE 1950 • Trucker, CA
Walter C. Schinnerer
BSCE 1950 • Hot Springs
Village, AR
Gaylord H. Widner, Sr.
BSCE 1950 • Fort Wayne, IN
Leonard E. Wood
PhD 1956 • West Lafayette, IN
1960s
William C. Newcomb
BSCE 1962 • Evansville, IN
J. Nick Seibel
BSCE 1962 • Decker, IN
1980s
Patrick J. Cleary
PhD 1989 • Ames, IA
Kenneth C. Ward
MSCE 1987 • Beaver Dam, WI
Class Notes
We are always interested in featuring recent news about our alumni. To
have your accomplishments included
in this magazine and share them with
fellow alumni, please email information on awards/honors/recognition,
promotions, etc. to Cindy Lawley
(lawley@purdue.edu).
Please be sure to include the
year(s) and Purdue degree(s) you
have received.
check it out
Finding Fritz and Rachel
Photo courtesy of Bill Ridgely
One man tries to find the family that belongs to a 50-year-old box.
Not so long ago, an interesting request came to the attention of Marty Burns, the
Purdue Alumni Association director of alumni activities. Bill Ridgely, of DeForest,
Wisconsin, was trying to solve a 50-year-old mystery. His letter details his parents’
friendship with Fritz and Rachel Ulrich a half-century ago in Springfield, Ohio. “Fritz
was an engineer and worked for the federal government,” Ridgely writes. When
the couple transferred to the West Coast, or overseas, “they asked my parents to
temporarily store some of their furniture and personal property.”
The temporary storage turned into years. “Apparently my parents did ship some
of their furniture to them at their request,” he writes. But as time passed communication became scarce and then nonexistent. The remaining furniture would even-
tually find its way to the curb, but his
parents held on to “a small bit of personal items with sentimental value.”
Ridgely would discover the sentimental
box again—labeled “Fritz and Rachel”—
as he was cleaning out his mother’s
house after his father died in 1998. “As
I browsed through the box, I knew I
could not throw it away,” he writes.
More recently, before Ridgely retired,
he was going through 35 years of
accumulated work and related items in
his basement when he happened again
upon the box. That was when he decided
“to locate Fritz and Rachel and return this
last bit of personal property to them.”
From the contents of the box, he
knew this much: Fritz was born Fred
William Ulrich, a 1940 Purdue civil engineering graduate. He married Rachel
Emily Fahl, perhaps in 1940, and they
had two daughters—Susan Kay and
Becky Ann—born in 1945 and 1946
in Springfield. The box contains family
photographs, a Bible given to Fritz by
his parents, notebooks from Purdue, a
1940 graduation invitation and class list,
along with other personal items, some
of them dating back 80 years.
Through the internet and the Social
Security death index Ridgley learned that
a Fred Ulrich died in Orlando, Florida, in
1996 and an R. Ulrich had an Orlando
address, but the phone was not in service for incoming calls in 2001. A letter
sent was neither answered nor returned.
“I don’t know if there is any hope of
finding Rachel,” Ridgley writes. “But
maybe the girls would like to have
these old family items.”
That’s where we come in. Anyone
with any clues to this mystery can
email us at peimpact@purdue.edu.
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Impact Fall 2005